TOMS RIVER – More than 100 homes and a variety of businesses are going to be built at the corners of Route 37 and Bimini Drive, an already busy intersection.
The land is currently two open fields, sandwiched between shopping centers, storage units and office buildings. The 24.414 acres include both the east and west sides of Bimini, and all of it is south of 37. It’s in the Rural Highway Business Affordable Housing Zoning District, according to paperwork from the Toms River Planning Board.
This area has sat dormant for decades but it’s always been a concern of residents in the nearby Holiday City at Berkeley development. A lot of residents have been waiting for the other shoe to drop, expecting the land to be filled. One issue is that Berkeley doesn’t have any control over this property. The senior community homes are all on Berkeley land, but the property where the commercial development is proposed is in Toms River.
Therefore, the developer went before the Toms River Planning Board, which approved the proposal. It cut back on some variances that the developer wanted, such as signage and fencing.
Berkeley Councilwoman Sophia Gingrich spoke out against the development at a Township Council meeting two days before the planning board.
“We have petitions and made numerous calls” in protest, she said. “The traffic would be horrendous. Bimini has always been crash prone.”
Recently, residents have come to Township Council meetings with concerns about dangerous crashes at the corner of Bimini and Biabou Drive, which is the first intersection you reach heading south from 37.
Development Plans
There will be two, two-story townhouses. The 16 units inside will have three bedrooms each.
There will also be four, three-story apartment buildings, totaling 98 units. Three of these will have 24 units (nine 1-bedroom, twelve 2-bedroom, and three 3-bedroom units). One will have 26 affordable housing units (six 1-bedroom, fourteen 2-bedroom, and six 3-bedroom units). The 26-unit building will also have a 2,000-square-foot amenity area inside, which was indicated to be a fitness center for residents only.
Every town in New Jersey is required to provide a certain number of affordable housing units. The affordable housing in this development will be part of the town’s fourth round of requirements, which takes place in the years 2025-2035.
There will be a 5,126 square foot restaurant/retail building, a 2,335 square-foot restaurant/retail building, and a 5,000-square-foot retail building.
A 30,352-square-foot Matt Blatt Kia sales and service building will be built on the west side of Bimini, and a 5,670 square foot QuickChek convenience store and gas station will be on the east side.
A traffic engineer estimated the site will generate 275 new peak hour trips.
Attorney Ruth Deane represented Holiday City at Berkeley Shareholders Association at the Planning Board meeting. She asked questions about variances, parking issues, school buses on the residential property and more. She and other residents spoke about how dangerous the area is.
The New Jersey Department of Transportation has already approved improvements to the roads. Bimini will be widened to allow for a left turn out of Bimini at the signal on 37, so there would be two lefts and one right. The widening would also allow for a center turn lane for access to the parcels.
The car dealership, for example, will have an entrance from Bimini. It’s going to be on the west side of Bimini. There will be an exit lane to go north on Bimini and another to go south on Bimini.
The QuickChek is on the east side of Bimini. Drivers will be able to enter the QuickChek from Bimini. They will be able to leave the Quick Check to go north or south on Bimini, with two lanes for leaving the site. There will also be a right-in entrance and a right-out exit on 37.
There was discussion about planting trees as a buffer.
As for drainage, the developer’s engineer said the site drains from northeast to southwest. On the west side, the site drains to the back rear corner, where there is an existing inlet which discharges to an existing pond on the industrial site where the bus company is located. There will also be retention basins built in the development.
The property was referred to as Block 506.01, Lots 1.01-1.07
